Sunday, October 27, 2013

Saying Goodbye Without Saying Hello Blog Tour ~Review & Guest Post

 Title: Saying Goodbye Without Saying Hello by RaeBeth McGee-Buda
Genre: Nonfiction/Christian/Grief & Loss
Audience: Adult
Formats: Paperback and Ebook
E-Cover By: RaeBeth McGee-Buda
Paperback Cover: Marcy Rachel
Editor: Lee Ryder
ISBN-10: 1484801466
ISBN-13: 1492110884
Date Published: October 15, 2013


Synopsis:
The journey of pregnancy brings hope, joy, and love for the expecting mother. The hope of giving birth to a new life. The joy of feeling this new life grow inside of her. The love that starts with a test that doesn’t ever end. Dreams for the unborn child flood the new mother’s mind, as well as those around her. Each step of the pregnancy is a cherished moment. The anticipation of meeting her cherished baby builds from the very first month and ends after birth.

This is the story of one mother and how a few words changed her life forever. How a piece of her faded when she heard these words: “There’s no heartbeat.” When RaeBeth Buda laid in the hospital in labor, she and her husband heard those dreaded words.

What happens when all of those dreams are shattered in a moment’s notice? How does one cope with the loss of their child? This is the story of their journey and of the devastating grief of the loss of her daughter, Dakota Emily Buda.

*****

Small Teaser
Shortly after our perfectly imperfect wedding, my husband and I headed off to our honeymoon. We were thrilled. It seemed like things were finally falling into place. He had a great job and we were happy. The honeymoon was amazing. We decided to take a trip to the Pocono’s for the most amazing time at the most beautiful and entertaining resort we could find...Pocono Palace. I felt like a princess. We overly enjoyed our honeymoon. We took walks, played games in the game room, and made some memories would will last a lifetime.

Of course our honeymoon went by too quickly and after two weeks, we headed home. I was glad to though because I was missing my daughter. She’s an amazing little girl who has one heck of a sense of humor. She brightens our world.  There’s not a day that goes by where she doesn’t make us laugh or make our hearts melt. Her personality is amazing and her outlook on the world is impressive.

Let me introduce to you our princess, Emma.  She’s our world, our breath that we breathe, and we love her more than life itself. She’s a daddy’s girl and isn’t your typical little child. She loves to get down and dirty with her daddy when working on cars, but won’t hesitate to spend the day getting her nails painted with Mommy.

When we got back from our honeymoon, life went back to the way it was. Emma started first grade and Greg went back to work. I had a book I needed to finish writing. I tried so hard to finish this book but out of the blue, I started to get sick. My stomach would hurt and I was exhausted. Several weeks went by and I didn’t seem to be getting any better.
Then it came to me, I might be pregnant.




Review:
Saying Goodbye Without Saying Hello draws the reader in from the beginning. I normally hate reading non-fiction books, but Raebeth's story is one book that should be read to read understand what she dealt with. There were times that I got tears of sadness, but overall, this was a very good book that is a must read.



About the Author:
RaeBeth McGee-Buda was born in southwestern Pennsylvania in 1987, the second daughter of Rachel Yost and Arthur Curtis McGee. RaeBeth grew up loving to read and write poetry, as well as short stories. Her childhood dream was to become a teacher. Rae Beth's dream of writing was created in her eleventh grade literature class where writing became her passion.

RaeBeth married in August 2012 to her husband, Gregory Stephen Buda Jr. and resides in a small Pennsylvania town of Fairchance. RaeBeth is a full time mother of one beautiful little girl and a mother to an angel in heaven as of May 27th, 2013.

She graduated from American Intercontinental University in 2010 with her associates in business administration. She enjoys spending her time writing and feels that connecting with readers is her main goal.

Author Links:


Email
raebeth.buda@gmail.com

Guest Post


How to Meet Deadlines and Remain Sane (at least for me):
One thing I didn’t realize when I decided to become a self published author is that..... it’s work! Scratch that... it’s A LOT of work! When I signed up for this gig, I wanted to sit at my computer and pound the keys while creating an entertaining world on my screen. I didn’t realize that there was so much more to being an author.
When I first published Silenced (my first book), I thought, “Hey this is cool!” By the time I got to publishing Saying Goodbye Without Saying Hello, I remember saying several times, “I need a personal assistant.”
I am my own personal assistant. I organize all of the blog tours. I keep all websites, Facebook pages, and blog up to date. In addition, I also run my own street team. It’s to the point where I am always working with something that deals with my book. It’s not just writing anymore. So, how do I do it? How do I manage all of this without loosing my mind. ORGANIZATION!!!
At the beginning of every year, I purchase a planner. It has a planning section with full monthly calendars and each month is broken down into days. Then, I have my contacts section where I keep the most frequently used contact information for quick access. The third section is resources. I don’t use this. But the last section, I’d be lost without; the notes section. I keep track of upcoming events, street team stuff, and ideas.
In addition to all this wonderful stuff to help with the planning, I start things super early. This way there is time for errors. I rely on my street team for a good bit of the promotion. They do an amazing job. This takes some of the stress off of me. But I still find it hard to write. It seems like I have to decide... do I promote my work and hang out with the readers? OR Do I write? **Remember I’m a stay at home mom too.**
Organization is key. If I didn’t have my to do lists, I’d lose it. I set deadlines and I strive to reach them. Self discipline is a must. If I don’t force myself to do it, it won’t get done.
What do you do to help stay organized?
 
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Saturday, October 26, 2013

Felicia Tatum's New Release

 
Book: Masked Encounters, Intoxicating Passion Book 1
Author & Publisher: Felicia Tatum
Editor: Shaner Media Creations
Cover Image: Rene Folsom
Blurb
Korah Daniels has been through a lot in her nineteen years. Broken hearts, abusive relationships, and horrid dates have caused her to doubt love. When her friend talks her into attending the local frat house’s Halloween party, will she find the one person who can change her outlook on life?
Dane Davidson is the worst kind of playboy. The ultimate frat boy, drinking and ending up with a different girl every night. When his frat house throws a masked Halloween party, a certain angel catches his attention and may just turn his life upside down.
Masked Encounters is the first in a five part novelette series. The second installment will release in January 2014. 
 
Purchase Links
Barnes&Noble: NOT YET AVAILABLE
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/370437
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18515723-masked-encounters?from_search=true

About Felicia Tatum
 Felicia Tatum was born and raised in Tennessee. She always loved reading, and at the age of twelve began writing. Her passion for creating stories grew and in May 2012, she finally wrote her first novel, The White Aura.
She still lives in Tennessee with her daughter and her kitty. She loves cooking, books, and animals are some of her best friends. She watches a lot of Disney channel and often dreams up new book ideas. She's currently working on various projects, including the rest of the White Aura Series, the Scarred Hearts Series, and a novella series. Her dream is to write as many books as possible while entertaining as many people as possible.
 
 
 
 
Where to find Felicia


Sunday, October 20, 2013

Give Me Reason Blog Tour ~Guest Post & Review




Title: Give Me Reason
Author: Zoey Derrick
Series: The Reason Series (#1)
Genre: Paranormal Romance/Fantasy
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: Sept 24 2013
 
Blurb/Synopsis: 
Vivienne Callahan has known only hardship. As if growing up with an alcoholic, drug addicted mother wasn’t traumatic enough, she’s escaped from her physically and verbally abusive boyfriend only to struggle every day to make ends meet as a waitress in a Minneapolis diner.
Along comes Mikah Blake, a handsome stranger who quickly takes an unexpected and persistent interest in her. On the surface, “Mr. Suit” seems to be Vivienne’s opposite: rich, well-fed, successful. As Vivienne will learn, Mikah is more than he seems, and for reasons unknown, he’s determined to be her knight in shining armor. But after having finally found her own two feet after years of abuse,  it’s difficult for her to accept Mikah’s help.
Will her body’s unexpected response to Mikah’s touch be reason enough to overcome her pride and traumatic past and learn to love and trust? Or will her past, refusing to be left behind, come back to claim her?

Book Links


My Review
I had read Give Me Reason twice. Give Me Reason is a really great romance novel that you wouldn't believe is fantasy. I was like, 'how is it fantasy?'. Well, we find out later on. Vivienne pushes Mikah away and does not accept his help. By the end of the novel, Vivienne still doesn't accept help from Mikah. She needs to learn to trust that he won't hurt her, but she is not ready for that.
5 stars

Author Info

It is from Glendale, Arizona that Zoey Derrick, a mortgage underwriter by day and romance and erotica novelist by night, writes stories as hot as the desert sun itself. It is this passion that drips off of her work, bringing excitement to anyone who enjoys a good and sensual love story.
Not only does she aim to take her readers on an erotic dance that lasts the night, it allows her to empty her mind of stories we all wish were true.
Her stories are hopeful yet true to life, skillfully avoiding melodrama and the unrealistic, bringing her gripping Erotica only closer to the heart of those that dare dipping into it.
The intimacy of her fantasies that she shares with her readers is thrilling and encouraging, climactic yet full of suspense. She is a loving mistress, up for anything, of which any reader is doomed to return to again and again.

Author Links

Excerpt

He’s looking down at me, making me feel small at five feet two inches. He has to be at least six feet tall. Broad shoulders. His suit today is gunmetal grey with blue or black pin striping—I can’t tell which. His shirt is a beautiful lavender color with a darker purple tie.
"How do you know I'm not an addict?" I ask, softly.
He smiles at me, warm, genuine. "Because, you've come to return the money I left you last night as a tip." My jaw falls open.
"How"—I swallow hard—"did you know?"
His smile fades a little. "Because, why else would you come down here?"
I close my mouth and look down at the floor. His ability to read me is really scary.
"Since you haven't eaten since last night, I'm going to take you to lunch."
I feel my face flush bright red, both in anger and complete irritation. "That is not why I'm here. I've survived for my entire life fending for myself, I don't need some rich hot shot business mogul buying me food." I reach into the pocket of my bag and pull the folded up paper from it. I thrust it towards him. He refuses to take it. Tears of frustration trickle down my cheeks. "Damn it Mikah, take it." I push it at him again and again he refuses. "I'm not a damn charity case. I don't need your money or your food."
The bell chimes. We’ve finally reached the skyway. As soon as the doors open, I drop the folded up paper with his money in it and bolt from the elevator, turning left, hoping and praying I can get away.
"Vivienne, stop." I hear him say behind me. I keep going, walking quickly but not running. Yet. I'm trying hard to not make a scene.
But he doesn’t seem to care about that. He catches me quickly, spins me around. I grab hold of his arm to catch my balance so I don't go sprawling onto the floor. 


Author's Guest Post
Writing Process….

I’m not convinced that I have one. Well not a solid one. I write a book from beginning to end - I really cant write one in pieces at a time.
In the past - with Finding Love’s Wings - I wrote out a scene that I ended up altering so much that I practically re-wrote it so this has taught me to get the story out in chronological order and then, if something doesn’t work right in a certain spot, it gets cut and a lot of times the context changes when I move it to its new home. Sometimes this can be a very obnoxious process because in a lot of cases, I have to change the many things that follow and refer back to that scene.
This is actually true in Give Me Hope - The Reason Series Book 2. There is a scene that originally appears towards the beginning that, thanks to the help of my editor, has been completely removed and moved to a different part of the book. The scene is vital so it could not be cut all together, which is something I have a tendency to do rather than move it all together. But, removing a scene usually means that it wasn’t right for the story or it dragged a little too long.
So I write, edit, write, edit some more, then format and finalize.

Thanks so much for having me on your blog today. It’s been a lot of fun.